Fruitfulness

Fruitfulness (1899) is a novel by French author Émile Zola. Published as the first installment of his Les Quatre Évangiles, a series of four novels inspired by the New Testament gospels and aimed at investigating prominent social issues, Fruitfulness was written while Zola was living in exile in England following his advocacy on behalf of Alfred Dreyfus, a French Jew falsely convicted of spying. An inspired secularist and socialist, Zola foresaw his final literary project as an essential step forward in human consciousness and societal evolution, a vision tragically cut short by his death only several years later. In nineteenth-century France, following the collapse of the Second Empire, widespread economic instability has led to a dangerously low birthrate. Forced to make impossible decisions for the lives of their families, people have given up raising more than one or two children, leading to a strain on the workforce and creating a society without the joys of youth. Against all odds, and despite the harsh judgment of their peers, Mathieu and Marianne Froment attempt to raise a family of twelve children. Grounded in love and solidarity, the Froment family becomes a symbol of perseverance and a model for their beleaguered community. Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book. With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.